AFL trade news: Why Matt Owies’ potential departure fits with Carlton’s poor decade up forward

Carlton has been searching for a goalkicking small forward for 10 years. And now the Blues have one, they are pushing him out. JOSH BARNES delves into Carlton’s Matt Owies conundrum.

Can the Blues afford to throw away their best small forward in years? Pic: Michael Klein

For more than a decade, Carlton has been searching for a reliable small forward who can hit the scoreboard.

In the past two seasons Matt Owies has filled that role better than any other Blue since the ‘Amigos’ days of Jeff Garlett and Eddie Betts.

Yet Owies has been left without a contract and surely must be searching for greener pastures elsewhere when the trade period kicks off on Monday.

The Blues can blame a tight salary cap for the stand-off, with Owies joining Sam Durdin, Jack Carroll and Matt Carroll in the October limbo of not yet delisted but also not yet signed up for 2025.

Owies’ future remains under a cloud. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Matthew Owies appreciation post.#AFLBluesDeespic.twitter.com/QKcghAuZW0

— AFL (@AFL) August 12, 2023

Carlton has to pay big bucks to a bunch of stars, such as Charlie Curnow, Harry McKay, Patrick Cripps, Jacob Weitering and Tom De Koning, a group that all deserve the cash and would be the envy of most other list bosses.

But that means new deals were hard to come by late this year and Owies was left on the rack, despite bagging 33 goals to finish behind McKay and Curnow in the goalkicking list.

The problem for the Blues is the other small forwards were already signed up.

Corey Durdin (contracted to 2026), Elijah Hollands (2026), Jesse Motlop (2025), Lachie Fogarty (2026), Orazio Fantasia (2025), Matt Cottrell (2027) and new swingman Zac Williams (2026) are all locked in.

But none of those players had the output of Owies in the last two seasons.

His tally of 33 goals was the first time a Carlton small kicked more than 30 majors in a season since Jeff Garlett kicked 43 in 2013.

Jeff Garlett bagged 43 goals in 2013. Picture: Michael Klein

And his combined tally of 60 goals in the last two seasons is the best since Betts bagged 75 across 2012-13.

Consider this: none of Williams, Hollands, Motlop, Cottrell or Fogarty have managed to kick 60 goals in their entire careers to this point.

Potentially Owies’ pressure has fallen to a level that puts him in jeopardy, given he averaged just 1.1 tackle inside-50 and 12.1 pressure acts per game in 2024, the worst marks of his career.

But Owies rated elite in tackles per game in 2022 and was graded as above average for pressure acts in the three years before this season, so a kick in the bum would have surely seen him lift.

One experienced AFL defender thought Owies was a difficult match-up this year — clearly smart around goals and quick enough to apply decent pressure in a game where they crossed paths this season.

And at a club where availability has quickly become the most important ability given a long injury curse, Owies was fit for the entire 2024 campaign and his only missed game was due to suspension.

The Matt Owies situation is strange...

Are we simply moving in another direction?

Does the club have something up their sleeve?

I don't know, something just seems very off with the whole thing.

I'm very intrigued to see where this goes over the next few weeks...#Baggers

— Alex Caiafa (@acaiafa23) September 25, 2024

He has missed just 11 games due to injury in six seasons on the list.

Sure, given the cap conundrum at the Blues, essentially losing Owies to be able to afford Dan Houston would be a talent win.

But given the fat that has been trimmed from the Carlton list, it is strange that Owies remains on the outer.

Owies has been linked with a host of clubs with his future in limbo, with West Coast, Gold Coast, Melbourne and Brisbane Lions reportedly among the clubs interested.

There have also been reports he has been offered to Port Adelaide as part of the Blues’ attempts to broker a deal for Houston.